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FUNDAMENTALS OF REFRIGERATION

Refrigeration is the science of producing and maintaining temperatures below that of the surrounding
atmosphere. This means the removing of heat from a substance to be cooled

Refrigeration is generally produced in one of the following three ways:

(i) By melting of a solid.
(ii) By sublimation of a solid.
(iii) By evaporation of a liquid.

Co-efficient of Performance (C.O.P.):

Co-efficient of performance is defined as the ratio of heat absorbed by the refrigerant while passing through the
evaporator to the work input required to compress the refrigerant in the compressor ; in short it is the ratio
between heat extracted and work done

Refrigeration Effect
C.O.P. =
Work input

Actual C.O.P
Relative C.O.P. = .
Theoretical C.O.P.

Standard Rating of a Refrigeration Machine:

The rating of the refrigeration machine is given by a unit of refrigeration known as ‘‘standard commercial tonne
of refrigeration’’ which is defined as the refrigerating effect produced by the melting of 1 tonne of ice from and
at 0°C in 24 hours. Since the latent heat of fusion of ice is 336 kJ/kg, the refrigerating effect of 336 × 1000 kJ in
24 hours is rated as one tonne, i.e.,

336 𝑥1000
TR = = 14000KJ/hr
24

REVERSED CARNOT CYCLE

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Heat abstracted from the cold body = Area ‘npqs’ = T2 × pn

Work done per cycle = Area ‘lpnm’ = (T1 – T2) × pn

Heat extracted from the cold body

Co-efficient of performance, C.O.P. =
Work done per cycle

REVERSED BRAYTON CYCLE

Considering m kg of air:
Heat absorbed in refrigerator, Qadded = m × Cp × (T3 – T2)
Heat rejected is cooler, Qrejected = m × Cp × (T4 – T1)

If the process is considered to be polytropic, the steady flow work of compression is given by

𝑛
Wcomp = 𝑛−1
(P4V4-P3V3)

Similarly work of expansion is given by

𝑛
WExp = 𝑛−1
(P1V1-P2V2)

The net external work required for operation of the cycle =

Steady flow work of compression – Steady flow work of expansion

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AIRCRAFT COOLING SYSTEMS:

In an aircraft, cooling systems are required to keep the cabin temperatures at a comfortable level. Even
though the outside temperatures are very low at high altitudes, still cooling of cabin is required due to

 Large internal heat generation due to occupants, equipment etc.

 Heat generation due to skin friction caused by the fast moving aircraft
 At high altitudes, the outside pressure will be sub-atmospheric. When air at this low pressure is
compressed and supplied to the cabin at pressures close to atmospheric, the temperature increases
significantly. For example, when outside air at a pressure of 0.2 bar and temperature of 223 K (at 10000
m altitude) is compressed to 1 bar, its temperature increases to about 353 K. If the cabin is maintained at
0.8 bar, the temperature will be about 332 K. This effect is called as ram effect. This effect adds heat to
the cabin, which needs to be taken out by the cooling system.
 Solar radiation

For low speed aircraft flying at low altitudes, cooling system may not be required, however, for high speed
aircraft flying at high altitudes, a cooling system is a must.
Even though the COP of air cycle refrigeration is very low compared to vapour compression refrigeration
systems, it is still found to be most suitable for aircraft refrigeration systems as:
i. Air is cheap, safe, non-toxic and non-flammable. Leakage of air is not a problem
ii. Cold air can directly be used for cooling thus eliminating the low temperature heat exchanger
(open systems) leading to lower weight
iii. The aircraft engine already consists of a high speed turbo-compressor, hence separate
compressor for cooling system is not required. This reduces the weight per kW cooling
considerably. Typically, less than 50% of an equivalent vapour compression system
iv. Design of the complete system is much simpler due to low pressures. Maintenance required is
also less.

Fig: Simple air refrigeration system with T-s diagram

1. Ramming process: Let the pressure and temperature of ambient air be P 1 and T1 respectively. The
ambient air is rammed isentropically from pressure P 1 and T1 temperature to the pressure P2 and
temperature T2. This ideal ramming action is shown by the vertical line 1-2. In actual practice, because of
internal friction due to irreversibility’s, the temperature of the rammed air is more than T 2. Thus the
actual ramming process is shown by the curve 1-2' which is adiabatic but not isentropic due to friction.
The pressure and temperature of the rammed air is now P2' and T2' respectively. During the ideal or

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actual ramming process, the total energy or enthalpy remains constant i.e., h2 = h2' and T2 = T2'.

By applying steady flow energy equation to the ramming process:

We now that, Cp - Cv = R

Substituting this value of Cp in the equation above, we have:

Where a = Local sonic or acoustic velocity at the ambient air conditions.

Where, R is in J/kg K.
So we have:

Where, M is the Mach number, which is the ratio of velocity of the aircraft (C) to the sonic velocity (a),
i.e. M = C/a.
The temperature T2 = T2' is called the stagnation temperature of the ambient air entering the main
compressor. The stagnation pressure after isentropic compression (P2) is given by:

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Due to the irreversible compression in the ram, the air reaches point 2' instead of point 2 at the same
stagnation temperature but at a reduced stagnation pressure P2'. The pressure P2' may be obtained from
the expression of ram efficiency (ηR) which is given as:

2. Compression process: The isentropic compression of air in the main compressor is represented by
the line 2'−3. In actual practice, because of internal friction, due to irreversiblities, the actual
compression is represented by the curve 2'−3'. The work done during this compression process is given
by:
Wc = Ma.Cp (T3'−T2')
Where: Ma = Mass of air bled from the main compressor for refrigeration purposes
3. Cooling process: The compressed air is cooled by the ram air in the heat exchanger. This process is
shown by the curve 3'−4. In actual practice, there is a pressure drop in the heat exchanger which is not
shown in the figure. The temperature of air decreases from T 3' to T4. The heat rejected in the heat
exchanger during the cooling process is given by:
QR = Ma. Cp (T3'−T4)
4. Expansion process: The cooled air is now expanded isentropically in the cooling turbine as shown
by the curve 4-5. In actual practice, because of internal friction due to irreversibilities, the actual
expansion in the cooling turbine is shown by the curve 4-5'. The work done by the cooling turbine
during this expansion process is given by:
WR = Ma .Cp (T4 − T5')
The work of this turbine is used to drive the cooling air fan which draws cooling air from the heat
exchanger.
5. Refrigeration process: The air from the cooling turbine ( i.e. after expansion) is sent to the cabin
and cock pit where it gets heated by the heat of equipment and occupancy. This process is shown by the
curve 5'-6. The refrigerating effect produced or heat absorbed is given by:
RE = Ma .Cp (T6 − T5')
Where T6 = Inside temperature of cabin
COP of the air cycle = refrigerating effect produced / work done

If Q tonnes of refrigeration are the cooling load in the cabin, then the air required for the refrigeration
purpose,

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Power required for the refrigeration system,

C.O.P. of the refrigerating system

Note: The value of c p for air is taken as 1 kJ/kg K.

BOOT-STRAP AIR COOLING SYSTEM:

Figure 2: Schematic diagram and T-s diagram for a boot-strap air cycle cooling system:

This boot strap air cooling system has two heat exchangers instead of one, and a cooling turbine drives
a secondary compressor instead of cooling fan. The air bled from the main compressor is first cooled by
the ram air in the first heat exchanger. This cooled air, after compression in the secondary compressor,
is led to the second heat exchanger where it is again cooled by the ram air before passing to the cooling
turbine. This type of cooling system is mostly used in transport type aircraft.
1. The process 1-2' represents the isentropic ramming of ambient air from pressure P 1, and
temperature T1 to pressure P2 and temperature T2. The process 1-2' represents the actual
ramming process because of internal friction due to irreversibilities.
2. The process 2'-3 represents the isentropic compression of air in the main compressor and the
process 2'-3' represents the actual compression of air because of internal friction due to
irreversibilities.
3. The process 3'-4 represents the cooling by ram air in the first heat exchanger. The pressure drop
in the heat exchanger is neglected.

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4. The process 4-5 represents compression of cooled air, from first heat exchanger, in the
secondary compressor. The process 4-5' represents the actual compression process because of
internal friction due to irreversibilities.
5. The process 5'-6 represents the cooling by ram air in the second heat exchanger. The pressure
drop in heat exchanger in neglected.
6. The process 6-7 represents isentropic expansion of the cooled air in the cooling turbine upto the
cabin pressure. The process 6-7' represents actual expansion of the cooled air in the cooling
turbine.
7. The process 7'-8 represents the heating of air upto the cabin temperature T 8.
If Q tonnes of refrigeration is the cooling load in the cabin, then the quantity of air required for the
refrigeration purpose will be

Power required for the refrigerating system,

and C.O.P. of the refrigerating system

REGENERATIVE AIRCRAFT COOLING SYSTEM:

Figure: Regenerative Aircraft cooling system with T-s diagram

The regenerative air cooling-system is a modification of a simple air cooling system with the addition
of a regenerative heat exchanger. The high pressure and high temperature air from the main compressor
is first cooled by the ram air in the heat exchanger. This air is further cooled in the regenerative heat
exchanger with a portion of the air bled after expansion in the cooling turbine.
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This type of cooling system is used for supersonic aircrafts and rockets.

The process 1-2 represents' isentropic ramming of air and process 1-2' represents actual ramming of air
because of internal friction due to irreversibilities.

2. The process 2'-3 represents isentropic compression of air in the main compressor and the process 2'-3'
represents actual compression of air because of internal friction due to irreversibilities.

3. The process 3'-4 represents cooling of compressed air by ram air in the heat exchanger.

4. The process 4-5 represents cooling of air in the regenerative heat exchanger.

5. The process 5-6 represents isentropic expansion of air in the cooling turbine up to the cabin pressure
and the process 5-6' represents actual expansion of air in the cooling turbine.

6. The process 6'-7 represents heating of air upto the cabin temperature T7.

If Q tonnes of refrigeration is the cooling load in the cabin, then the quantity of air required for the
refrigeration purpose will be

For the energy balance of regenerative heat exchanger, we have

Where T8 = Temperature of air leaving to atmosphere from the regenerative heat exchanger
Power required for the refrigeration system:

and C.O.P. of the refrigerating system:

2 MARKS QUESTIONS
 What is DART(Dry air rated Temperature
 Difference between Open system and Closed system
 Define Mach number and mention its significance
 Define Ton of Refrigeration and classify aircraft refrigeration system
 What is regenerative system?

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